Twenty Questions

In the first of this new series for the journal, Peter Singer responds to questions from the editors and Theron Pummer

Thalamocortical synchronization and cognition: implications for schizophrenia?

Cognitive deficits are a core dysfunction in schizophrenia. In this issue of Neuron, Parnaudeau et al. (2013) investigated synchronization in thalamocortical pathways in an animal model to address the disconnection between brain regions as a mechanism for working memory impairments in the disorder.implicated dysfunctional neural oscillations in the explanation of cognitive deficits and certain clinical symptoms of schizophrenia. Specifically, we will focus on findings that have examined neural oscillations during 1) perceptual processing, 2) working memory and executive processes and 3) spontaneous activity. The importance of the development of paradigms suitable for human and animal models is discussed as well as the search for mechanistic explanation for oscillatory dysfunctions

Rich and poor

"... we cannot avoid concluding that by not giving more than we do, people in rich countries are allowing those in poor countries to suffer from absolute poverty, with consequent malnutrition, ill health and death. This is not a conclusion that applies only to governments. It applies to each absolutely affluent individual, for each of us has the opportunity to do something about the situation; for instance, to give our time or money to voluntary organisations. If, then, allowing someone to die is not intrinsically different from killing someone, it would seem that we are all murderers ..." - page

Éhség, bőség, és moralitás

A morális ügyek – morális fogalmi sémánk – kezelési módját meg kell változtatni, és ezzel azt az életmódot, amelyet ma magától értetődőnek fogadnak el társadalmunkban

High-precision force sensing using a single trapped ion

We introduce quantum sensing schemes for measuring very weak forces with a single trapped ion. They use the spin-motional coupling induced by the laser-ion interaction to transfer the relevant force information to the spin-degree of freedom. Therefore, the force estimation is carried out simply by observing the Ramsey-type oscillations of the ion spin states. Three quantum probes are considered, which are represented by systems obeying the Jaynes-Cummings, quantum Rabi (in 1D) and Jahn-Teller (in 2D) models. By using dynamical decoupling schemes in the Jaynes-Cummings and Jahn-Teller models, our force sensing protocols can be made robust to the spin dephasing caused by the thermal and magnetic field fluctuations. In the quantum-Rabi probe, the residual spin-phonon coupling vanishes, which makes this sensing protocol naturally robust to thermally-induced spin dephasing. We show that the proposed techniques can be used to sense the axial and transverse components of the force with a sensitivity beyond the yN $/\sqrt{\text{Hz}}$ range, i.e. in the xN$/\sqrt{\text{Hz}}$ (xennonewton, $10^{-27}$). The Jahn-Teller protocol, in particular, can be used to implement a two-channel vector spectrum analyzer for measuring ultra-low voltages.Comment: 7 pages, 4 figure

The Oxford Vegetarians- A Personal Account

Peter Singer describes his encounters with a small group of vegetarians at Oxford University from 1969 to 1971 and some of the developments launched by those encounters with fellow philosophy students, including Richard Keshen, John Harris, and Roslind and Stanley Godlovitch. Others in Oxford at the time included philosopher Stephen Clark, theologian Andrew Linzey, and psychologist Richard Ryder. Members of the group have produced several landmark publications addressing the moral status of animals, including the initial volume, Animals, Men and Morals (edited by the Godlovitches and John Harris and published in 1971), Singer’s landmark volume, Animal Liberation in 1975, Linzey’s 1976 book on animal rights and Christian theology, Clark’s 1977 volume on the moral status of animals and Richard Ryder’s book on animal research (Victims of Science published in 1975). Singer comments that it is too early to say what influence the group may have had. However, for many in the animal protection movement, it is clear that the Oxford group of accidental friends and scholars has had an enormous impact on the animal protection movement

Singer Speaks With Spira

While in Melbourne, Henry Spira attended a workshop arranged by ANZFAS for animal rights/welfare workers to discuss the strategies adopted by the Coalitions. He advised on how Australian animal welfare groups could use US experiences to devise new approaches for local action. For Animal Liberation Magazine he talked with fellow activist, PROFESSOR PETER SINGER, author of Animal Liberation, about animal rights issues and his involvement in the movement